Hope Now Wears Skinny Jeans
by CarsonRae
Summary: George can't handle Fred's death. So much, in fact, that he's afraid of attachment. Especially when he meets Stephanie, a free spirited, spunky girl. Can he move on and realize his feelings for her before it's too late? R&R, PLEASE!
1. Too Much Firewhiskey

**Disclaimer: I do not own the fantabulous world of Harry Potter, nor do I own any of the characters except those of Stephanie and her family, although, I do pray to the lord that I did own all of this and that I was married to Shia LaBeouf. ENJOY!**

" How is he?" Hermione asked as her boyfriend, Ron, came down the stairs. She leaned up against him and listened to his heartbeat. She looked back up at his face. He sighed and shook his head.

"Terrible. He refuses to come down and won't talk to anyone. I think he got drunk off fire whiskey." He replied.

" You guys suck." A voice came from the living room. All the Weasleys, Hermione, and Harry were there. They had been worried sick about George since his twin, Fred, had died at the big battle at Hogwarts only three months earlier. He hadn't talked to anyone since the funeral and never came out. He had Apparated to get food from the kitchen or use the bathroom. No one had seen him for more than a minute in the last three months.

" I'll go up. If you hear explosions or screaming, don't come up till someone calls." Ginny said, standing up from her spot beside Harry. They all nodded and she ascended the stairs two at a time.

She eventually reached the topmost room and pounded on the door. When there was no reply, she sighed and pounded on it harder.

" GO AWAY! I don't wish to see anyone." George's slurred voice came from the other side._ ' Yep, he's drunk' _Ginny thought.

" George, if you don't open this door, I'm going to blast it open." She heard no movement and after a minute, she groaned and pulled her wand out of her pocket.

" Okay, you asked for it. BOMBARDA!" she shouted and the door blasted off its hinges and into a million pieces, revealing a very pale and wide-eyed George, holding a fire whiskey bottle.

" I didn't think you'd actually do it! COOL!" he said.

" If you want to be on the receiving end of an Impedimenta curse, I'd pipe down and put that fire whiskey away. You know how I feel about drinking. The whole concept is rubbish" she said. She repaired the door, locked it and put a Muffliato spell so no one would hear.

" The concept is not rubbish. It soothes your pain." He whispered. Ginny turned around, her face beet red.

" IT DOES NOT SOOTHE PAIN! IT CONCEALS IT! HIDES IT IN YOUR DRUNKENESS AND ONLY COMES OUT WHEN YOU'RE SOBER AND YOUR MIND IS OUT OF THE INFLUENCE OF IT!" she shouted. She pulled up the loose floorboard where the twins had kept their drafts of the Skiving Snackboxes and discovered about a dozen or so bottles of firewhiskey. Some of them were full, most were empty. She levitated them into the air and flew them out the window.

" Those are expensive!" George said, running towards the window. She pulled him back by his shirt and sat him on the bed.

" George, listen to me. Listen good, cause I'll kick your ass if you don't. Drinking is not the way to soothe the pain of losing Fred." She started. George looked away, teary-eyed.

" Please, don't." he whispered.

" I know it's hard. It's hard on us all. Even Hermione! She never got along with Fred, but even she feels like a part of her died when Fred did. I know it's harder on you because Fred _was_ half of you. But, you cannot sit here and dwell on it. You need to move on. Mourn his death, yes. Miss him, yes. Dwell on it and waste your life away, no. You need to go run that shop because Fred would kill you if he had known that you had abandoned that shop all on his accord. You need to go talk to your family because he'd slaughter you if he knew you had left them to worry about you."

" He would, wouldn't he?" George asked, a smile creeping on his face.

" Yep." She replied.

" Thanks, Gin." He said and hugged her.

" Did my big brother just show affection towards me?" she playfully asked.

" Don't push it. You can go, just give me a couple minutes to straighten myself out." He said. She smiled and left the room. As she climbed down the stairs, all the Weasley's attention shot towards her. She paused for a moment to create suspense.

" I am the master!" she shouted. The crowd looked at her with awe. " He'll be down soon." She said and helped herself to a biscuit.

_You can do this George. She's right. He'd chop your head of if he found out you were wallowing in self-pity. _George thought. He took in a couple deep breaths and opened his door. He could smell ginger snaps and beef stew. He hopped down the steps and saw all of his family in the living room. They engulfed him in hugs and, after assuring them that he was all right, they sat down to eat.

When everyone was stuffed, George stood up and stretched.

" I'm going to go to the shop real quick. Make sure that it's okay." He said.

" Are you sure?" Mrs. Weasley asked.

" Yes. Mourn his death, yes. Miss him, yes. Dwell on it and waste my life away, no." They all nodded and he winked at Ginny before Apparating to Weasley Wizard Wheezes.


	2. Stephanie Part I

**AN: Still don't own Harry Potter or am married to Shia LaBeouf...**

_God, I hate Apparating. _George thought. It always felt like a snake was swallowing him whole and then spitting him back out. He landed in the loft above the shop where Fred and him had lived before the battle. George wandered about, observing everything. The place was very dusty and dingy. It reminded him of what he always thought Snape's home looked like. It was left just the way they had left it before they had moved back home to help with the Order. He walked down the narrow hallway that led to two bedrooms on either side of the hall. He opened the one on the right and peered in.

Fred's stuff was strewn about the floor, haphazardly as though he was expecting to come back. His bed was a mess and the table in the corner was piled high with experiments that he had hoped to accomplish. George walked in, making sure not to mess up the order in which Fred's stuff was on the floor. He sat in the puffy chair and picked up the green notebook. Sticky notes were sticking out of the edges with notes on them. He opened to a page titled 'Really need to figure out'. It had a diagram of some type of sweet on it that he was coming up with that made whoever had eaten it the opposite sex for 24 hours. George laughed out loud and ripped the page out of the book.

" I'll do this for you, Fred." He said to no one in particular. He used a quick spell to lock the door from the inside and walked to the front door. Using another spell, he cleaned up the loft and exited down to the shop.

He walked out from the stair area very quietly and turned the corner. He thought he was alone, but he wasn't. There was a girl, with long coffee colored hair and wearing a pair of skinny jeans, Vans, and a shirt that showed her mid-drift.

" Um…hi." He spat out. The girl jumped off the counter and faced him.

" I'm so sorry. I thought this place was abandoned. I'll just…um…go." She said, backing away towards the door. She turned to run and almost made it to the door before George shouted, " Wait!" She stopped and slowly turned around to face him. She had blue, green, and brown eyes, rimmed with an orange-gold color. Her freckles were barely visible through her tan, but just noticeable. She was very athletic; George could see the outline of her abs through her tight shirt. A Muggle cell phone was coming out of her right butt pocket and she had a bag with her that looked like it held a drawing or writng book.

" Please, sit. You _did _break in. That's the least you could do." He said. She slowly walked back over and resumed her place on the counter, staring down into her lap.

" I'm not mad, you know. Just want to chat. Especially since it looks like you come here a lot." He said. She looked up at him and smiled.

" I'm Stephanie. I'm really sorry for breaking in. I just thought this place was abandoned. I used to come here all the time, I'm a big time prankster and I used to come her for joke stuff, before the accident, of course. Then it just stopped being open, so I came in here to think. To wish that it would re-open and what I would do to it."

" I'm George. I own this fine establishment, but I don't think I need your input." He said. She gasped and jumped down from the counter.

" Are you one of the twins?" she asked, ignoring his somewhat rude comment.

" Yep." He replied.

" Wow! I've never actually seen one of you. I'm really sorry for your loss."

" Thanks."

" So, why did you abandon this place?" she asked, hopping back up on the counter. She leaned forward and her shirt showed most of her back and part of her stomach.

" Wh-What? Oh, SPAGHETTI!" he asked. He was more focused on her, not what she was saying. She was gorgeous, one of the prettiest girls he had ever seen. It was hard to pay attention.

" What the..um...that was...er...oh, never mind. Anyways, why hasn't this shop been open?" she asked.

" It's been rough, but I'm back now." He replied.

" Hmm, when are you planning to reopen?"

" One week." He said. She slid off the counter and headed towards the door. She was about to turn the knob when she looked back and smiled. Her smile was crooked, but really pretty.

" See you then." She said, and walked out into the cold night.


	3. The Ew Factor

**AN: Thank you all so much who have reviewed and given me your helpful criticism! You are all fabulous! Here's chapter tres!**

George Apparated into the Weasley living room where all were seated around the fire, talking in pairs anout Quidditch, books, and the past. The crack of his Apparation turned all attention on him.

" Uh...sup?" he said, making a peace sign with his fingers.

" You were gone a long time." Mrs. Weasley said. Ginny got up from her place on Harry's lap and got right in George's face. She had her piercing stare, the death glare. _Avert your gaze George! _The voice in the back of his head said. He looked away, but she was there, too.

" What are you doing?" he finally asked.

" Breathe." she said.

" What the-" he said.

" BREATHE!" she shouted.

" Okay!" he shouted back and exhaled through his mouth.

" Okay, all good. Just making sure you weren't drinking in your absence. However, you could use a tic-tac." she said. Everone laughed, even George.

" Okay, well, I'm tired. Night." he said and tried to beeline for the stairs.

" Wait! What took you so long?" Hermione asked.

" I was tidying the place up. It looked like a dog had run through the place. Totally trashed. Night!" he replied and ran up the stairs. The four of them looked at each other in disbelief. George, cleaning, impossible. That's what wands are for. They all nodded in their secret-plan-agreement nod and sighed. Suddenly, Ginny gasped.

" Oh my, God, Hermione! I didn't show you the new makeup I just bought!" she said, standing up.

" Oh, right!" Hermione said. She jumped up from Ron and after kissing their boyfriends "good-night" they headed up the stairs. Ron and Harry looked at each other and stood up.

" Yeah, well, we're gonna go to bed. I'm tired after the pies we just ate." Ron said, stretching.

" Yeah, night!" Harry said to everyone and bolted up the steps. They met up with Ginny and Hermione at the landing and ascended the steps to George's room. They reached the door and knocked. There was no answer. Ginny pushed everyone back and pulled her wand out.

" George, I'll blast the door open again!" she shouted. There was a scuttling of footsteps and the door opened revealing a shirtless George.

" AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ginny screamed. She ran into the room and buried her face into his pillow. " My eyes! Cover up! Oh, God. Oh, God. I'm SCARRED!"

" Thanks, Gin." he said, pulling a shirt over his head.

" Dude, what are you doing. I have a girlfriend. I don't need her to focus on that." Ron said.

" I'm sure she's not interested. Right, Hermione? Hermione?" he asked, but she was staring aimlessly into space at where his shirtless stomach used to be.

" HERMIONE!" Ron screamed. She blinked and looked at him.

" What. Oh, sorry." she whispered. They went and sat down on his bed.

" So, what really took you so long." Harry asked. George inhaled and sat on the floor.

" A girl was in my shop." he replied.

" A girl?" Ron questioned. George inhaled deeply and began to tell the whole story. From the packing to when she walked out.

" Hmm...intriguing." Hermione said.

" What's intrguing?" he asked.

" Well, I think this girl broke in all the time hoping to meet you. I mean, look at the facts. She broke in all the time, thought it was abandoned, yet never turned the shop into her own, even though she had ideas for it. I think she has a greater purpose to all of this."

" Well, we'll find out in a weeks time. That's when I promised her to reopen." George said. He suddnely realized how dumb that time was. He needed to clean, makeover the whole shop, and figure out how to make the inventions in Fred's notebook. It just wasn't enough time.

" Almost as if reading his mind, Ginny said, " We'll help. You won't be able to do it all by yourself."

" Yeah!" Harry said.

" Totally." Ron and Hermione said.

" That unison thing is disturbing." George said.

" Okay, well we're going to go do our unison thing in my room." Ron said.

" Ew." George said back.

" Yeah, and...um...we're going to go talk about...um...Quidditch. Um...yeah." Ginny said.

" Ew." George repeated. They all left their seperate ways and George blew out the candle by his bed. He laid on his back, thinking about Stephanie. He fell asleep with her image in his mind.


	4. Stephanie Part II

Stephanie strolled into her house somewhere between eleven to midnight. She flipped off her Vans, put her cell phone in the basket on the table by the door, and walked into the kitchen. She found her mother cleaning something in the kitchen sink. Stephanie could tell she was worried because her mother was about to burn a whole through what she could now tell was a pan.

" Hi, Mum." she said. Her mother whirled around and put her hands on her hips.

" Stephanie Nicole! You were supposed to be in this house by ten! You weren't at that dingy shop again, were you?" she asked, turning back to the sink to clean the pan.

" It took me longer. I finally met the owner." she said. Her mother dropped the pan, which made a loud clank as it landed on the metallic surface.

" WHAT?! Oh, great! Now we're in trouble! We're going to get sued!" she said. She began to pace around the room, until Stephanie stopped her.

" No, we won't. He's nice. He's going to reopen a week from now, which means I might not be around even more. I'm tired. Night, Mum." she said and kissed her mother's cheek. Stephanie walked down the dimly lit hallway to the second room on the left. She passed by her little sister's room and shut the door, then began to proceed to hers.

Her room was a good size, painted green, with posters of the American Tim Burton movies such as Bettlejuice, the Nightmare Before Christmas, and the Corpse Bride. She took off her jeans and shirt and slipped into her blue ducky boxers and green tanktop. She slipped into her queen sized bed, under the green and black covers. Soon enough, she fell asleep, thinking of George.

* * *

" George? George? GEORGE!" Ginny shouted. He shot up in bed, hitting his head on hers. He collapsed back down while she fell to the floor. 

" Oh, dear GOD! That hurt!" Ginny screamed. She got back up and sat on the other bed. George sat back up, too, rubbing his forehead.

" Ow. What's up?" he asked.

" Get up." she replied and stumbled out of the room.

" God, this whole not-knocking thing is rubbish." George muttered to himself. He rolled out of bed and walked down the steps, still holding his head. They all sat down to eat and when they were done, George stood up and ran back up the stairs. He came down a couple minutes later, dressed in jeans and a tee.

" Alrighty, gotta go. Um...you guys will come tomorrow." he said, pointing to Harry, Ginny, Ron, and Hermione and Apparated out.

* * *

He landed in the shop, this time on the bottom floor. It was much cleaner, he could tell. Then he wondered how. He hadn't cleaned it. Who had? He looked around and saw Stephanie, sitting on the counter, playing with her cell phone. She was wearing short shorts (it was hot) and a tanktop, with a pair of Adidas slip-ons over a pair of green and black socks. 

" Hi...again." George said. She looked up and blindly finished with her cell phone before tucking in her pocket. She hopped off the counter and went over to the ex-Pygmy puff area.

" I wanted to ask you something. I need a job, I have got to move out. You're gonna need help once this place is up and running and to redecorate. I was hoping that, maybe, you would hire me to help you. You know, cleaning, organizing, cashiering. Of course, that's only if you even want my help." She looked down at her hands again and George walked over and placed his hands on her shoulders.

" Of course." he said. She lit up and a wide, crooked smile spread across her face.

" Well, we best get started, huh?"

**AN: Thanks for the reviews you guys! And no thanks to the losers who didn't review! JKJKJKJKLOLOLOL! But seriously. Anyways, um, writer's block, kind of, but it will continue! STAY TUNED! COMMERCIAL BREAK!**


	5. The Makeover

" Oh, hecks no." 

" Why not? I worked hard on this!"

" Cause it's a joke shop for everyone, not for Tim Burton!"

" So, it's a little on the dark-Halloween-Jack Skellington side! It's gorgeous!"

" No!" George shouted, looking at the mirage that Stephanie had conjured up over what the shop looked like. They were trying to decide what it should look like, but were unsuccessful for the past hour and a half. Her mirage was awesome, just not for a joke shop. The walls were black and there were pictures of Jack Skellington. It was creepy. He looked at her as she began to draw new ideas. She was sitting on the counter, again, tapping the pencil against her lips. Her shorts had rode up a little as well as her top. She had taken off her shoes and socks and put her hair up in a perfect ponytail without even using a mirror or brush. No, bad George. You mustn't get attached! Otherwise...it would blow up...like Fred. He thought. He swept away the images in his mind and began to make his mirage of what he wanted it to look like.

" Ahem." He said once he had finished. She looked up and, after seeing what he had conjured, she dropped her sketchbook and began laughing hysterically. She laughed for a couple minutes, then stopped and pulled herself together before speaking.

" Um...if you think that Weasley Wizard Wheezes is going to look like this, you must be joking." She said.

" Well, what's wrong with it?" He asked.

" Everything." She coolly replied. And she was quite right. Nothing matched. There were crazy patterns and colors everywhere. He looked around and saw what she was saying. Fred was always a little better at this stuff.

" Okay, well since we don't like this, we need to merge what we like together. That's the only way." She said. The store went silent as they thought.

" Aha!" Stephanie suddenly shouted. She walked over to George and put a rag around his eyes.

" What the hell are you doing?" he shouted, gob smacked and flailing around before keeping steady.

" I want you to be surprised." She said, and began her work. In five minutes time, she walked over to him and untied the rag from his eyes. What he saw, he loved. The colors coordinated each other. The store was gold and scarlet, just like the Gryffindor colors that they both belonged, too. There were articles of the store, Harry, Voldemort, the battle, anything really. There was writing on some of them, like on the Boy-Who-Lived, it was crossed out and said, ' the Boy-Who-Snogged-My- Baby-Sister'. The selves were backed into the wall a little bit, which left lots of room. There were hardwood floors now. He turned around and saw something awesome. In the corner was a picture of Fred and him on their opening day. At the bottom was an inscription that read 'In memory of Fred Weasley: My brother, my partner, my friend.' He turned to her and gave her a hug.

" Thank you." He said. The broke apart and he saw that she was crying.

" Are you okay?" he asked.

" Yeah. It's just, well, I knew Fred. I knew who you were and everything. Do you remember your second year? How Fred kind of ignored you and then got very sad after a couple months?" she asked.

" Yeah." He replied.

" Well, I was his girlfriend at the time, but I broke up with him because I had to move. I went to Beauxbatons for a while. We just recently moved back because my parents wanted my sister to go to Hogwarts. Fred and I have been in touch for a while, but then the letters stopped and then the death list that appeared in the paper had his name. That's why I've been coming here a lot. It reminded me of him. I'm sorry I lied to you." She said.

" It's okay. It's hard coping with death. But, this isn't going to get in the way of anything, right? I have got to open this shop, or my sister will kill me and Fred would hurt me if he knew I had abandoned it because of him." He said.

" No, it won't change anything." She said.

" Good. Now, I think that's it for today. We'll do the finishing touches tomorrow and I'll bring my family to see as well. You better be here. Also, I'm assuming that you knew all that stuff from Fred, correct." She nodded her head and was about to start walking to the door, when she suddenly stopped and turned to face him.

" I wouldn't miss it for the world." She said and went back to the door. She stopped before turning the knob and smiled at him before walking out. He watched her walk down the street and disappear into the night.


	6. Spin The Bottle

George awoke the next morning all by himself...about an hour later than he should have. He was about twenty minutes late to meet Stephanie. _I can't believe this!_ He thought. He scrambled out of bed, a little too fast, because he tripped over his sheets and fell forward on his face onto the hardwood floor, making a big pounding sound that echoed through the Burrow. He heard footsteps rush up the steps and Ginny burst into his room and ran to him. 

" You okay?" she asked.

" Yeah, I need to get up though. I'm twenty minutes late meeting Stephanie at the shop." He replied, attempting to get up. His arms shook and he fell back on the floor.

" Actually, you're an hour and twenty minutes late." A familiar voice came from the doorway. He slowly looked up. _Please, do NOT say that's Stephanie._ He thought. But, of course, standing in the doorway, wearing skinny jeans, again, Vans, and a yellow shirt that had an owl on it, smiling down at him, was none other than Stephanie.

" Are you friggin' kidding me?" he said, finally propping himself up. " How the hell did you track me down? Are you stalking me?"

" Noooooo-" Ginny tried to say.

" I wasn't talking to you." He interrupted.

" You don't have to get so defensive."

" I AM NOT GETTING DEFENSIVE! THIS CONVERSATION IS OVER!"

" But-"

" OVER!" he shouted and walked into the bathroom to shower.

" Um...that was weird." Stephanie said as they walked downstairs.

" He's like that in the morning. I swear he's PMS-ing." Ginny said, shrugging. They walked back downstairs and sat down, laughing at Ginny's joke. Just then, Harry walked downstairs, followed by Ron and Hermione. They all stopped dead in their tracks as they saw Stephanie. Harry shuffled to Ginny and gave her a kiss.

" Who's this?" he asked.

" Stephanie." She replied.

" Sup?" Stephanie asked. She got another cup of orange juice and continued to read the sports section of a Muggle newspaper she was holding. Everyone still stood in the spots, staring in awe at the fact that Stephanie had either not realized Harry Potter was standing in front of her or just didn't care that he was.

" I know you're there, Harry, and I know who you are." She randomly said, reading everyone's mind. They shrugged and sat down at the table, still a little curious about this new girl sitting down across from Ginny.

" By the way, Ginny. I hope you know that the younger Delacour really hates you." She said. Ginny's eyes flamed up and her jaw clenched. She took a deep breath and began frantically flipping through the Daily Prophet.

" Don't worry, Gin. It's not even close." Harry said. They began talking about which Quidditch team they liked better, Ireland or Bulgaria, and about Stephanie and Beauxbatons. After about half an hour, everyone heard George come down the steps and they switched their spots so the only vacant space was the one beside Stephanie. He grabbed a cup of coffee and sat down. The room went silent and Stephanie and Ginny began to read each other's sport sections.

" So, how did you get here?" George finally asked.

" After you neglected to show up for about a half hour, Ginny came to see if I was there. She brought me back here to wait." She replied, not taking her eyes of the paper.

" Oh." He said. For a while there was an awkward silence until Stephanie put down the paper and then gasped.

" Oh, my God! Okay, do you want to play an American-Muggle game?" she asked. They all nodded and she ran and grabbed a bottle from the shelf and went to the floor they followed and sat in a circle.

" Okay, girls come to this side, guys over there. All right, now that we're set up, here's what I'm going to do. I'm going to spin the bottle and let's say it lands on George. I would kiss him." She started. Ginny and Ron and George cringed.

" Ew." Ginny said.

" Family won"t kiss each other!" Stephanie shouted. They sighed in relief. She gave them a look and placed the bottle on the ground.

" The first time it lands on a person, a peck. The second time, a minute with, yeah, the third, in the closet for seven minutes. Ready?" she asked. They nodded in agreement. " Alright, Ron, you first." Ron reached for the bottle and, after a moment of hesitation, he spun it. It landed on Hermione and they kissed for longer than a peck. Hermione then spun the bottle, which landed on Harry. They kissed. He spun. It landed on Stephanie. They kissed. Then she spun. And it landed on George. They looked at each other and quickly kissed. Then he spun and it landed on her. They kissed longer, again.

" Ooh, one more time and you share the closet!" Ron shouted. She spun and the breathing across the room momentarily stopped. As it slowed down, everyone was holding their breath completely. It stopped all the way, landing on George, again. Ginny and Hermione picked up Stephanie while the boys picked up George and they threw them in the closet and locked it. They were together, alone.

" I'm really stupid for suggesting that game." She said.

" I don't think so." He said. His hand was on her arm and his other hand was on her neck. She looked up into his green eyes. They were gorgeous. They leaned in and he kissed her. His hand slid down to her waist and her arms were around his neck. For the first time in a while, they were happy. Happier than they had both been in a long, long time.


	7. Confrontations

_I am so glad I mentioned this game._ Stephanie thought. 

_I am so glad she mentioned this game._ George thought.

His hands slid from her waist to her back and he could feel her shirt sliding up with his hand. She was hot to the touch and her smooth skin made him shiver. She reached down to the bottom of his shirt, and then realized that this was wrong. Her eyes opened and she pushed him against the wall of the closet. He gave her a curious look and she straightened herself out and ran out of the closet.

" Wow, were you in there a long time." Harry said as George exited the closet.

" What was that loud thump?" Hermione playfully asked. They all laughed, except for George. He looked around for Stephanie and then noticed that Ginny was gone, too.

" Where's Gin?" he asked.

" She ran after Stephanie." Ron replied. Him and Hermione ran upstairs, leaving Harry and George alone. They sat down at the table and grabbed a muffin.

" Don't worry about it." Harry said, catching George off guard.

" What do you mean?" George asked even though he knew what Harry was talking about.

" She's just confused about her feelings. You need to show Stephanie that you want to be her friend first, boyfriend second. She'll come around." Harry said and took his muffin upstairs. George sat at the table, staring at his muffin as he mutilated it. _Is he right? Do I like her like that?_

No, of course not!

_But, you do._

You mustn't get attached...or else!

He sighed and walked upstairs to take a nap.

" Stephanie, wait!" Ginny shouted. Stephanie stopped in the middle of the Quidditch pitch and fell to the ground. Ginny ran up to her and saw that she was crying.

" Are you all right?" Ginny asked, kneeling down beside Stephanie. She shook her head and Ginny put her hand on her back. She sniffled and then looked up. She had wiped off her eyeliner and eye shadow and her mascara was running down her cheeks. Ginny did a quick vanishing charm to get rid of it. She looked really nice without makeup on.

" What happened? Did he do something to you?" Ginny asked. She shook her head and inhaled deeply before speaking.

" I just don't want to get attached because the last person I got attached to died. I don't want it to happen again." She replied, and with that she Apparated away.

* * *

George Apparated to the shop quite early in the morning. It was supposed to be Stephanie's day off so he decided to come in. He peered around the corner before entering the main area. He hadn't seen her in a month, but there were obvious signs that she was still around. He began to straighten up the shop and at eight o'clock, he turned the closed sign to open and opened the door to the new waves of customers. The shop filled with sounds of laughter, talk, and noises of some of his jokes. It calmed him a bit, but he desperately wished that Stephanie were there. As if on cue, he heard a familiar voice behind go, " Ahem."He whirled around and looked at her.

" We need to talk." She said.

" I agree, but we'll have to wait till lunch time closing." He replied. She nodded and took the cashier as he began to do some of the books in the back. She occasionally stopped in to get some extras of the things that were selling like crazy and every time she bent down to pick something up, he had to look away to make sure that it was kept professional until later times.

Eventually, one o' clock rolled around and he closed up the shop for lunch. They headed to the upstairs loft and sat at the table while he began to make tea.

" You first." He said, pouring water into the kettle.

" Okay, well first, I would like to apologize for running out on you and everything. Second, it's not because of you that I ran. It's just that, well, the last time I got attached to someone he died. I don't want it to happen again." She said.

" I understand." He said.

" So, just friends?" she asked. He looked up into her eyes. He didn't want to be just friends, but she obviously thought it best, so he made a little nod and she smiled.

" Good, because I really have been wanting to smoke you at a one-on-one Quidditch match." She said. He lightened up a bit at this statement.

" Please, you couldn't if you tried." He playfully said.

" Wanna bet?" she said, and Apparated out, George soon following suit.


	8. Old Friends And New Boyfriends

Time passed by for Stephanie and George. They hung out quite a lot, but George was falling in love with Stephanie. He understood her position, but he didn't want to be just friends. He wanted her and he was going to get her no matter what.

He walked into the shop early and began to put out some of the new things that he had made, such as the Sex Change and Last Breath, a pill that you swallowed that made you die for 12 hours. He remembered trying that on Stephanie. She had flipped out and called his parents, who were sobbing with the rest of the family when he awoke. Then they all punched him and didn't speak to him for a week. He put them both in the teenage section of the store and put some of the kid's stuff in their area. The bell rang and he looked up to find Stephanie, holding hands with someone.

" Hey! I didn't expect you to be here." She said. " George, this is my boyfriend, Dillon." Dillon held out his hand and George hesitantly took it. He didn't like Dillon. He looked like one of those jocks that cheat on his girlfriend with sluts.

" So, this is where you work." Dillon asked.

" Yeah." She said. He walked over to the Last Breath stand and looked at it.

" Do these give you minty breath?" he asked George. Stephanie had gone to use the restroom, so he nodded and Dillon popped one in his mouth. He fell to the floor just as Stephanie ran over to him.

" George! Did you do this?" she asked. He nodded then burst out laughing.

" Why did you do this?"

" Cause it's hilarious! He'll be up in 12 hours. Why don't we put him upstairs?" he said. She gave him a dirty look, but nodded and they dragged him upstairs. _This is the third guy she's dragged in here just this month. _He thought. They set him on the couch and set a timer for eleven hours so that Stephanie could be upstairs when he awoke. They went into the kitchen and he grabbed them a soda.

" Why are you always playing pranks on my boyfriends?" she asked.

" Why do you keep bringing them in here if you know I'm going to?" he replied.

" Because they're interested. Dillon likes me and he likes pranks, so he'll laugh this off and we'll continue to go out."

" Okay, why are you telling me this?"

" Because you're jealous of my boyfriends."

" What? That is preposterous!" he shouted.

" Okay, if you say so." She said.

" We have a shop to open. Let's go." He said and they headed downstairs to open the shop. Kids of all ages burst in once again and the teenagers headed for the new displays while others came to restock. Business went smoothly for a while. Stephanie took over the counter and George went around and helped people. He was bringing another box of Sex Change up when someone tapped him on the shoulder. He set the box down and turned around to face Katie Bell.

" Oh, my God! Katie!" he said and they engulfed each of with a hug.

" Hey. How are you?" she asked. He shrugged and she headed over to the picture on the wall.

" I miss him." She sighed.

" I miss him, too."

" Well, we have a lot to catch up on." She said turning around and giving him a very flirtatious look. He knew what she meant. They had exchanged glances like that many times at Hogwarts and ended up sharing a closet or dorm together for an hour.

" Yes, we do." He nodded. " Just one sec." She nodded and he went over to Stephanie.

" Um, my friend and I are going to catch up." He said. She looked around him and saw Katie.

" Catch up, huh? Fine. Go." She replied.

" You sure?"

" Yep. Go. Don't keep you 'friend' waiting." She said and turned back to her customer, giving him a nasty glare. He didn't care, though. She was bringing her boyfriends into his shop all the time, so she moved on. Now, he was going to, too. So, he spun around and led Katie up the stairs to catch up.

**AN: I apologize for the wait. I've been having, like, major writers block. So, anyways, please review!**


	9. Where Is My Underwear?

**AN: Thank you so much to those who reviewed. You all are fabulous! Now, this chapter has…um…well, let's say that I won't be writing it in, but George and Katie do the deed. S Have fun reading and please review!**

George and Katie were in the loft. Not clothed. Even a little bit. They were laying in the bed under the covers, the sheet around Katie's upper torso, her head on George's chest. He was stroking her hair as she played with the blanket.

" You know something?" he asked.

" Hmm?" she replied.

" Maybe we should go actually catch up. At that playground we used to love." He said. She put her chin on his chest and looked into his eyes.

" That sounds fantastic." She said and got out of the bed, taking the sheet with her.

" Hey! It's chilly! My goodness!" he shouted as she went into the bathroom. She turned around and gave him a playful smile before closing the door. He jumped out of bed and scrambled to find his boxers, which were nowhere to be found. Very chilly, he threw on the Katie's pink underwear.

" Oh, my God. If anyone saw me right now, I'd die." He muttered to himself. Just then, the door opened and Katie came out still wrapped in the sheet. She burst out laughing upon seeing him as he frantically looked for his boxers. She finally stopped and sat on the edge of the bed.

" You know, George, if you wanted to wear my underwear, all you had to do was ask." She said and laughed again.

" Where the hell is my underwear?" he asked. She pointed to the lamp where he found them hanging from. He took off hers and put his on. They both got dressed and cleaned up the place before leaving.

He found the shop completely packed and Stephanie was at the counter, looking very stressed and tired. He went to the back and grabbed boxes of things that were selling out fast. He put them up front and then realized that this was way too much to handle.

" All right everyone! Lunch! Please come back in two hours." He shouted, standing on the counter. With a couple of moans and sighs, the people left and he shut the door and locked it.

" Let me do some last minute stuff and then we'll go." George told Katie and headed to the back room. She left Stephanie at the counter and went back to the portrait on the wall. She ran her hand down where Fred was standing on one foot. A tear fell from her eye and ran down her cheek, catching Stephanie's glance.

" You know that he's just afraid, right?" Katie randomly said.

" What do you mean?" Stephanie innocently asked. Katie walked over to her and hopped on the counter.

" I've known both the twins since they made their big escape from Hogwarts their seventh year. I know George better though, thickness and all. I can tell that he likes you. He's just afraid to lose you." Katie said. Stephanie sighed and put down the ball she was playing with.

" I'm afraid to lose him, too. Which is why I can't be with him. I always end up losing what I love. I won't lose him, too." She said and walked upstairs, leaving Katie alone on the counter.


	10. In Your Eyes

George and Katie Apparated to the playground behind her house together and ran to the swings. They sat down and felt the swing sink as their weight was added. George looked around and saw how much this place had changed. What was then a carefree playground for Muggle and Wizard children alike was now very barren and looked as though a child hadn't played there for at least three years. The swings were very rusty and made horrid sounds as they went back and forth. Metal slides were also rusty and anything wooden or plastic had vulgar graffiti on it. Color had faded off of some things and others were ripped out of the ground.

" Jeez." He said.

" Yeah, mostly wizard children played here, but when Voldemort came, it was deemed unsafe, but they still came. Only until a child was kidnapped then found dead did people realize that it was quite unsafe. I guess it's just been forgotten now." Katie said.

" Wonder if it's still there." George said.

" I think it is. It was pretty strong." Katie said and hopped off the swing. George soon followed suit and they walked to the top of the hill, where they found it. The huge oak tree still stood, strong and gorgeous. It reminded George of something. He thought of the barren playground below and how it resembled the Wizarding world. Then, he thought that the tree resembled Harry and the Order, the one ray of hope. They moved further towards the tree and saw two markings. He looked at the one on the left. It read: F.W. + A.J. 4 ever. George managed a smile and then looked at the other one. It read: G.W. + K.B. 4 ever. He leaned against the tree and sunk to the ground. Katie sat down beside him, grabbed his hand, and leaned on his chest.

" You know, I can't stay." She said.

" I had a feeling." He replied.

" I'm moving. I can't stay. This place reminds me too much of him. He was like my brother."

" I understand, but you can't run away forever." He said.

" I know, but right now, I need to have my time. Besides, you have a girl waiting in your shop for you."

" She's not waiting for me."

" I can tell that she is. She likes you. I can see it in her eyes." Katie said. She looked up at him and smiled. He looked at her and kissed her cheek.

" Do you hate him?" she asked.

" A little. I've never been on my own. He just left. It's not his fault. Just, a part of me wishes that when he died, I had died with him."

" I heard you almost died." She said. He laughed, for he remembered the joke he had made when everyone was around him and his ear had been blown off.

" _How do you feel, Georgie?" whispered Mrs. Weasley._

_George's fingers groped for the side of his head._

" _Saintlike," He murmured._

" _What's wrong with him?" croaked Fred, looking terrified. " Is his mind affected?"_

" _Saintlike," repeated George, opening his eyes and looking up at his brother. " You see…I'm holy. Holey, Fred, geddit?"_

_Mrs. Weasley sobbed harder than ever. Color flooded Fred's pale face._

" _Pathetic," he told George. " Pathetic! With the whole wide world of ear-related humor before you, you go for holey?"_

" _Ah, well," said George, grinning at his tear soaked mother. " You'll be able to tell us apart now, anyway, Mum."_

" Was it that funny?" she asked. He laughed again and told her the story.

" You are such a dumbass. Fred was right. Of all the ear-related humor in the world, you picked _holey_? Boy, you're crazy."

" Maybe." He said. She checked her watch and then stood up.

" I have to go. I need to get my stuff, so don't go back to the shop, yet. I want to have one last look by myself. Take care, George." She said and knelt down to kiss him. A tear fell down her cheek and with one last goodbye, she Apparated out, leaving George under the oak tree.

* * *

Katie Apparated to the upper level of the shop. She looked around one last time, grabbed her things, and headed downstairs, hoping to find Stephanie. Luckily, she found her sitting on the counter, looking aimlessly out of a window.

" Ahem." Katie said. Stephanie's head whipped around. She saw Katie and gave her a dirty look before returning to look back out the window.

" I'm not here to take him from you. He likes you. I can tell by the look in his eyes." Katie said. Stephanie slowly looked back at her.

" Look, George and I can't happen, Katie. Remember what happened with Fred?" Stephanie said.

" Yes. He was very upset. But, you were 12! That was eight years ago!" Katie shouted.

" I can't." Stephanie whispered.

" Yes, you can. You just won't. You're afraid, I get that, but you can't live your life like this. It's over and done with. Move on." Katie said, heading for the door.

" Take care of him. I won't be around to do it anymore. His heart's been broken once, don't break it again." She said and left the shop.

**AN: Thanks for the reviews you guys! Sorry for the wait. Christmas is stressful. Anyways, please review and ENJOY!**


	11. His Heart's Been Broken Once

" _His heart's been broken once. Don't break it again."_

Katie's words rung through Stephanie's mind as George trudged into the store and gave her a faint smile.

_You can't do this to yourself, Stephanie._

_Yes, I can._

_You shouldn't._

_But I love him…_

Stephanie watched George walk up to the loft and shut the door. She followed him up the stairs silently and watched from afar as he sat on the chair. Just then, Dillon woke up and looked around. 

" What is going on? Where am I?" he asked. George stared at him with wide eyes, wondering what to say.

" Um, Dillon, I think you should go." Stephanie said stepping towards him. He gave her a questioning look, but shrugged and ran out. George looked from her to the fire with what looked like tears in his eyes.

" I thought you liked Dillon." He said, still avoiding eye contact. Stephanie stood in her spot, unable to say anything or move. She wanted the boy sitting by the fire. She wanted to run her hands through his fiery red hair and kiss him.

_If you want to kiss him, then do it._

Finally, she couldn't take it. Just as he looked back at her, she flung herself at him and kissed him more aggressively than she had ever kissed anyone before. At first, he resisted a bit, and then he wrapped his arms around her and kissed her back. After a couple minutes, they pulled away and she laid her head on his chest.

" I love you, George."

" I love you, too, Stephanie."

**AN: I am terribly sorry for the shortness of this chapter, but I kind of lost interest in it and was about to give up, until I remembered all you faithful fans out there. I hope you enjoyed it and if you are left story less, then check out ****The Dynamic Duo****, my new story about how Fred and George became the most notorious pranksters that Hogwarts has ever seen! Bye!**


End file.
